Charming Cambodia

Cambodia is perhaps the most exotic locale that I’ve ever visited.  I remember as a kid hearing about it in reference to Cambodian refugees.  However, many may know of it because of two famous movies.

Lara Croft - Tomb Raider, that Angelina Jolie (she adopted a child from here), Oscar worthy (not), teenage boy fantasy movie, has a very famous scene filmed in one of the temples in Cambodia.  Do you remember the temple where the trees have grown over the ruins?  Well, that’s here, along with several other fascinating relics from a time when Cambodians were a force to be reckoned with.  These are temple complexes the size of Manhattan.  And, one of the largest, also considered one of the wonders of the world, is Angkor Wat.

It’s hard to get a real concept of the size of Angkor Wat because there are moats, then walls, then galleries, then more moats, then reflecting pools, then stairs, you get the idea.  The reliefs carved into the walls are exquisite, telling the story of the Khmer people and their Buddhist and Muslim past.  Buddhist monks still use this temple for worship.  Best of all, there were temple monkeys!   There were also lots of Cambodian children selling bracelets, guidebooks, postcards, anything they thought a tourist might buy.  They knew enough English to not take no for an answer.  I told one little girl that I had no money and she replied, “No money, no honey, no baby”.  Classic.

At our last temple stop, we were treated to a ride around the complex on elephants.  Not the smoothest ride, but definitely one I won’t forget.  Another temple experience I couldn’t miss was sunrise at Angkor Wat.  It sort of reminded me of one of those sun god rituals where everyone gathers at the edge of the water to bow before mother sun as she rises in the east.  There were throngs of people with all sorts of camera gear waiting to record the break of day.  As with most highly anticipated events, they’re never quite what you expect (brilliant colors reflected on the water with the complex in the distance) but I’m glad I experienced it none the less.

The second movie that really was an Oscar contender, The Killing Fields, tells the tale of the short but brutal reign of Pol Pot.  Millions were killed, gunned down in these killing fields, simply for being part of the intellectual class.  Wearing glasses or having smooth palms was enough to make you a target.  The country is still trying to recover from his regime.  Sorry, I really can’t think of anything cute or clever to say about this one.  Humans can really be horrible to each other.

With that uplifting note, I will say that we found the Cambodian people to be charming, engaging, happy people that are the epitome of resilient.  The streets are filled with motorcycles hauling entire families (no car seats here!) at all hours of the day, kids wedged between parents or just clinging to the driver on the back.  Taxis here are called tuk tuks, and involve a motorcycle pulling a rickshaw like contraption.  You can get almost anywhere for a couple of bucks.  The view was well worth the price.

We also experienced the homeland of reflexology/nail salon/spa by getting an hour long leg and foot massage for $6 American.  While this is a place you’d never step into in the states, somehow it seemed okay here.  The one treatment that we avoided was stepping into a tank filled with dead skin eating fish.  Creepy!  Our trip doctor however, thought a picture of him juggling while receiving the fish treatment was worth the risk.  I just hope they have back-ups in case he catches some rare fish flu and has to be airlifted to Singapore.

In conclusion, we LOVED Cambodia, its people and the spark of life you could see in their eyes.  They are fighting their way back from a dark past into a future that hopefully will bring them peace and prosperity.